Transcript

Landowners in Solomon Islands are making an unprecedented bid to buy themselves a gold mine after the national government backed out of a planned purchase last month.

There are reports from within government that the purchase of the Australian-owned mine could come by way of a joint venture between landowners and a foreign investor.

Koroi Hawkins has more

Since its closure in April last year the future of the Australian-owned Gold Ridge gold mine has been uncertain. The mine went up for sale in the middle of the year with the Solomon Islands government quick to put its hands up for the purchase. But several complicating factors, including the chronic environmental issues surrounding the mine's poorly constructed tailings dam and a national election which brought in a new government, resulted in a long disjointed negotiation process. It ended with the government backing out of the deal in March - much to the consternation of Bob Vassie, the Chief Executive of mine owner St Barbara.

BOB VASSIE: We were a bit surprised to be honest. We had progressed quite far with the previous administration and we had got to a, in fact to a signed terms sheet. We expected that the new government might take some time to get up to speed with things and so we were prepared to wait for a while. In reality there's three important stakeholders, particularly for this particular mine the only mine in the Solomon Islands. To go anywhere forward you've got to have the government, you've got to have the landowners and you have got to have the operator. So that is why we pursued it with the previous administration and the new administration. But also why we are now pursuing a potential arrangement with a land owner based company as well.

Mr Vassie said it was too early to speak about what exactly the new arrangements involved but the head of Resource Policy in the Office of the Prime Minister Dr Christopher Vehe Sagapoa was able to shed some light on what might transpire.

DR CHRISTOPHER VEHE SAGAPOA: There is an investor from Papua New Guinea that is coming in to try and create a joint venture with the landowners to purchase the mine from St Barbara. It hasn't come to our knowledge how they have progressed with their arrangements and the government is not in the arrangements.

Whatever the arrangements turn out to be the Gold Ridge landowners in Solomon Islands say they are excited about the prospects of taking ownership of the closed goldmine from St Barbara. The chairman of the Gold Ridge Community and Land Owners Association, Dick Douglas, says they are working with St Barbara and the Solomons' government to effect a transfer of ownership to Gold Ridge landowners.

DICK DOUGLAS: We need to participate fully in this development, we need to have the benefit out of our own resources. And that is the government's policy. Rather than we sit down and watch. And our vision is to get everything and then get all other aspects that the development within the industry.

Mr Douglas says he hopes their efforts pave the way for other land-owning groups in Solomon Islands to take ownership of and develop their own resources.